People with Dirty Hands: The Passion for Gardening

A lively, offbeat tour through the landscape of colorful American gardeners, "People with Dirty Hands" is "one of the most amusing, eclectic gardening books in recent memory" ("Publishers Weekly"), "written with style, passion and readable, quirky nosiness" ("Chicago Sun Times").

From inside the book

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LibraryThing Review

User Review - Cheryl_in_CC_NV - LibraryThing

Well, from my snow-bound apartment this December, I really wanted to like this. But it just didn't work for me. For one thing, it was too superficial. There were themed sections, but each covered so ... Read full review

Review: People with Dirty Hands: The Passion for Gardening

User Review - Elizabeth Rhea - Goodreads

A delightful read-- a meandering narrative that makes you feel like you're riding shotgun with the author on her fascinating adventure. Immersive Journalism done right!!Read full review

About the author (1997)

Robin Chotzinoff, the granddaughter of the famous pianist and music critic Samuel Chotzinoff, grew up in New York City. Educated at prestigious Brearley School in New York and Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, Chotzinoff also attended Bryn Mawr for a year before dropping out to look for adventure in Berkeley and Arizona. During her journey, Chotzinoff worked as a waitress, shined shoes, drove a delivery truck, and played the piano for some forgettable bands. Chotzinoff became interested in gardening at the age of 16 after watching her aunt plant a bag of white onion sets. In 1997, Chotzinoff wrote the book People with Dirty Hands: The Passion for Gardening, a best-selling collection of essays detailing the obsessions of some of the more eccentric gardeners in the country. A recipient of the National Endowment of the Arts fellowship in 1987, Chotzinoff is a staff writer for Westword, an alternative newspaper in Denver. Her articles have appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines throughout the country. Chotzinoff lives in a log cabin in Indian Hills, Colorado.